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March 1, 2007 Version 3
Biomass-to-electricity power generation for emissions reduction DRAFT
Steve Brink
Wood from sustainably managed forests can be replenished continuously, leading to a plentiful and
dependable supply. Trees store carbon as a result of photosynthesis. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is generated
during combustion of the wood. However, there is no net production of CO2 because the CO2 generated
equals the CO2 consumed during the lifecycle of the tree. Moreover, biomass power is the most nondiscriminating use of woody material because it supplements any forest or agricultural product use by
generating energy from by-products that would otherwise be waste.
How power is generated:
Controlled combustion of wood in a power boiler produces compressed steam. The steam is introduced into
a steam turbine, where it flows over a series of aerodynamic turbine blades, causing the turbine to rotate.
The turbine is connected to an electric generator, so as the steam flow causes the turbine to rotate, the
electric generator turns and electricity is produced. Direct-fired biomass power boilers are typically in the
20-50 megawatt size class.
Sustainable biomass utilization offers multiple benefits1:

Renewable Energy – Biomass generated electricity reduces demand for fossil fuels (coal and natural
gas), reduces “leakage” (imports), and increases security and reliability of supply. Every ton of
biomass burned to generate electricity avoids 0.4 tons of CO2 emissions from a natural gas fired
powerplant2.

Water Quality – Actively managed forests can lead to a 50-60% reduction in acres burned due to
catastrophic wildfire thereby reducing soil erosion and related watershed impacts along with the
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction associated with wildfire3.

Global climate change – One bone dry ton of Biomass utilized to generate electricity in a biomass
powerplant provides a net reduction of one ton of greenhouse gas emissions compared to a coal or
natural gas-fired powerplant.4

Wildfires are the biggest risk to Wildlife – Clean forests leads to decreased frequency and intensity of
catastrophic wildfires, which results in reduced tree mortality and loss of wildlife habitat. The biggest
risk to wildlife in California is catastrophic wildfire (Steve Thompson, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
June 9, 2006 editorial in the Redding Searchlight)
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- Biomass in California: Challenges, Opportunities, and Potentials for Sustainable Management and
Development. June 2005. California Biomass Collaborative (CEC #500-01-016) pp xiii-xiv.
2
- Biomass in California: Challenges, Opportunities, and Potentials for Sustainable Management and
Development. June 2005. California Biomass Collaborative (CEC #500-01-016) p. 4.
- Finney, Mark A. June, 2000. “Design of Regular Landscape Fuel Treatment Patterns for Modifying Fire
Growth and Behavior”. (Forest Science Journal 47(2) 219-228.
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- Dr. Gregg Morris, Green Power Institute. January 2007.
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
Economics - Biomass utilization leads to job creation, yields tax benefits, and creates additional
economic activity to add vigor and diversity to local economies.

Reduction in wildfires – Managing fuel loads could lead to a 50-60 percent reduction in acres burned
from wildfire and a significant reduction in the current $900 million/year spent on wildfire suppression
in California.

Local grid support – Distributed and strategically located biomass powerplants can provide local
voltage support and reduce electricity transmission requirements, helping to mitigate congestion during
periods of high power demand.

Reduced waste disposal – Using waste for energy and products reduces disposal in landfills.

Air quality – Biomass for power generation results in a 96-98 percent reduction in emissions compared
to open field burning5 (see Table 1).
TABLE 1: Comparison of Emissions Between Biomass Boilers and Field Burning
Pollutant
Sulfur Oxides
Nitrogen Oxides
Carbon
Monoxide
Particulates
Hydrocarbons
Total
Field Burning
(lb./ton)
Biomass Boiler
(lb./ton)
Percent Reduction for Biomass
Boiler
1.7
4.6
70.3
0.04
0.70
0.40
97.6
84.8
99.4
4.4
6.3
87.3
0.26
0.00
1.4
94.1
100.0
98.4
Using 17 million bone dry tons (bdt) of biomass/year for energy could produce up to 7,000 new primary
jobs, displace 6.8 million tons of CO2 from natural gas-fired powerplants, and generate renewable carbon
credits that might eventually be worth more than $200 million6.
California’s bioenergy action plan and “roadmap” conclude that the biomass power generation industry
could be 2,500 megawatts; today, it is 550 megawatts. For a 2,000 megawatt increase in operating capacity,
about 17 million bone dry tons of additional feedstock (urban woody waste, agricultural woody crop waste,
and forest biomass) would have to be generated. An industry with 2,500 megawatts of operating capacity
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- "Emission Benefit From Firing Orchard Residue at Delano Energy Company", Dr. C. Moyer and J.
Pont, Acurex Environmental Corp., December, 1997 and “Hydrocarbon Characterization of Agricultural
Waste Burning” CAL/ARB Project A7-068-30, University of California, Riverside, E.F. Darley, April
1979.
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- Biomass in California: Challenges, Opportunities, and Potentials for Sustainable Management and
Development. June 2005. California Biomass Collaborative (CEC #500-01-016) p. xiv.
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would consume about 20 million bone dry tons of woody biomass annually, which would provide a net
reduction of 20 million tons of GHG emissions by offsetting use of a coal or natural gas-fired powerplant.
STEVEN A. BRINK
Vice President – Public Resources
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Biomass Conversion Factors
1 green ton of chips
1 Bone Dry Ton (BDT) of chips
1 Board Foot (BF)
1 MBF
1 green ton
6 green tons
1 BDT of fuel
10,000 lbs. of steam
1 MW
1 MW
1 gigawatt (GW)
= 2,000 lbs. (not adjusted for moisture)
= 2 green tons (assuming 50% moisture content)
= Lumber measure equivalent to 12”x 12”x 1”
= 1,000 BF
= 160 BF of lumber
= 1 thousand board feet (MBF)
= approximately 10,000 lbs. of steam
= 1 megawatt hour (MWH) of electricity
= 1,000 horsepower
= power for approximately 750-1,000 homes
= 1,000 MW
Bone Dry Ton (BDT) – traditional unit of measure for pulp/paper and biomass industry. One BDT is 2,000
lbs. of biomass at zero percent moisture. Typically forest biomass collected in the woods is delivered
“green” to the end use facility. If it is at 50 percent moisture content, 2 green tons = 1 BDT.
A 50 MW biomass powerplant will use 1,200 BDT/day; 100 chip vans/day
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Ecolink, Vol. 13, Number 3, 2003. Temperate Forest Foundation.
2. Benefits of Biomass Power in California. August 1997. Appel Consultants Inc.
3. Biomass in California: Challenges, Opportunities, and Potentials for Sustainable Management and
Development. June 2005. California Biomass Collaborative (CEC #500-01-016).
4. "Emission Benefit From Firing Orchard Residue at Delano Energy Company", Dr. C. Moyer
and J. Pont, Acurex Environmental Corp., December, 1997.
5. “The Economic Implications of Energy Production from Forest Residuals”, Dr. Gregg Morris,
Green Power Institute, October 1998.
6. “Hydrocarbon Characterization of Agricultural Waste Burning” CAL/ARB Project A7-068-30,
University of California, Riverside, E.F. Darley, April 1979.
7. “Proposed Policy for the Management of Biomass Wastes in California”. California Biomass
Energy Alliance, May 1998.
8. Clean and Diversified Energy Initiative. Biomass Taskforce Report.
Western Governors
Association. January 2006
_____________________
From:
Subject:
Date:
To:
"Andrea Tuttle" <atuttle@nature.berkeley.edu>
Thanks Steve: Biomass info
Mon, April 23, 2007 8:11 pm
steveb@cwo.com
SteveThanks for putting these together - good set of bullet points. I'll take a
look at the references too.
Do you happen to have similar information on the use of co-gen by mills in
CA? How many mills are still left, how many have co-gen facilities, and
what capacity or output of electricity they produce in the aggregate?
This would give a sense of scale and whether there is additional capacity.
I'm working closely with Cindy Cory of the Farm Bureau and USFS/PSW to
consolidate biomass information, along with other ETAAC members. Once we
get a draft I hope you'll be willing to help review it -- will probably
have an early version by mid-summer.
Thanks again for your help and time in putting this information together
best wishes,
Andrea
On Sun, April 22, 2007 10:02 am, Steve Brink wrote:
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Andrea - attached is a short paper where I've compiled the quantitative
aspects of woody biomass supply in California and the benefits it can
bring for net GHG reductions.
Steve Brink
California Forestry Association
1215 K St., Suite 1830
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-444-6592
916-444-0170 fax
916-208-2425 cell
steveb@cwo.com
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